PARIS — Eugenie Bouchard came up short in her bid to become the first Canadian to reach a Grand Slam final in the Open era, dropping a 4-6, 7-5, 6-2 decision to Russia’s Maria Sharapova in the semifinals at the French Open on Thursday.

“It was a tough battle, it was what I expected,” said Bouchard. “I didn’t play as well as I had earlier in the tournament. It’s always disappointing to be a bit off. I needed to be aggressive and go for my shots.”

Sharapova, the No. 7 seed, lost the first set for the third straight match, but again managed to turn things around. Sharapova won eight of the last 10 games, and has now won 19 straight three-set matches on clay.

“She played an unbelievable match, her level was extremely high,” said Sharapova. “I was fortunate to come up the winner. The way she was playing was tremendous today.”

Russia’s Maria Sharapova celebrates winning the semifinal match of the French Open tennis tournament against Canada’s Eugenie Bouchard at the Roland Garros stadium, in Paris. (DAVID VINCENT/AP)

Sharapova completed a career Grand Slam by winning the title at Roland Garros in 2012, but lost to Serena Williams in last year’s final.

Bouchard, the No. 18 seed, was playing at the French Open for the only second time. Last year, the 20-year-old from Westmount, Que., lost to Sharapova in the second round.

“I’m always disappointed with a loss,” Bouchard said. “I expect a lot from myself. You know, I felt like I was close today and just came up a bit short. That happens sometimes. I feel like I played a lot of good matches the past two weeks, three weeks even, and so it’s sad to see it come to an end.

“But it just motivates me … I was still so close. That just gives me extra motivation to work hard in practice and get ready for the next one and have that belief that I can do it.”

Fourth-seeded Simona Halep of Romania faced 28th-seeded Andrea Petkovic of Germany in the other semifinal. The final is scheduled for Saturday.

Sharapova struggled a bit with her serve, double-faulting nine times and getting broken four times. But she made up for her shaky serving with solid groundstrokes, either going for winners or waiting out errors from Bouchard.

Bouchard took the early lead with her first break in the third game of the match, smacking a forehand winner to give herself a 2-1 edge. She quickly made it 3-1 by completing a run of winning 12 of 17 points.

The pair traded breaks early in the second set, and then again later. But Sharapova managed to stay ahead and broke Bouchard for the third time in the set to even the match at one set apiece.

Sharapova served first in the third set, and made her move in the fourth game, converting her third break point to take a 3-1 lead that she held onto until the end. The Russian completed the victory in two hours 27 minutes.

“I constructed the points well but I didn’t finish them as well as I could,” Bouchard said. “In the third set, I didn’t feel tired, but she does put so much pressure on you. She elevated her game later in the match, I tried to do my thing and I had a couple of chances but I didn’t take my opportunities.

“Maybe I let off a bit on my shots in the second and third sets.”

Genie Bouchard showed plenty of fight right to the end. But Sharapova's experience won out. Knew how to close the deal. #FrenchOpen

Bouchard, who reached the Australian Open semifinals in January, saved four match points before Sharapova won it with a forehand that Bouchard missed on the other end.

“The semis of a Grand Slam are always exciting,” Bouchard said. “I felt good on the court. I enjoyed it on the big stage. I tried to compete (and gave it) my best. I love playing tennis so I enjoyed being out there. I actually felt better on court than I did in Australia.”

Russia’s Maria Sharapova (L) shakes hands with Canada’s Eugenie Bouchard at the end of French tennis Open semi-final match. (KENZO TRIBOUILLARD/AFP/Getty Images)

Bouchard and Carling Bassett-Seguso, who lost in the US Open semifinal in 1984, are the only Canadian singles players who have made the final four at a Grand Slam in the Open era.

Sharapova won her first Grand Slam title 10 years ago at Wimbledon. She followed that with major titles at the U.S. Open in 2006 and the Australian Open in 2008. But since she recovered from having right shoulder surgery in 2008, she has vastly improved her clay-court game and has won six of her last eight titles on the red surface.

This year, Sharapova has already won clay-court titles in Stuttgart and Rome, and her six wins so far at Roland Garros give her an 18-1 record on the dirt this season.

And like against Bouchard, it’s been tough to beat her in three sets on the surface. The last time Sharapova lost a three-set match on clay was at Roland Garros in 2010, when Justine Henin beat her in the third round.

The loss ended a 10-match winning streak on clay for Bouchard, who came to Paris after winning a warmup event in Germany.

Sharapova owns a 3-0 career record against the Canadian. She also beat the Wimbledon junior champion last year in Miami.

With files from The Canadian Press.

Russia’s Maria Sharapova reacts after a point during her French tennis Open semi-final match against Canada’s Eugenie Bouchard at the Roland Garros stadium in Paris on June 5, 2014. (PATRICK KOVARIK/AFP/GETTY IMAGES)

A lot of second serves in this third set, for Bouchard. Sharapova is going to make you pay.

Russia’s Maria Sharapova (R) and Canada’s Eugenie Bouchard are pictured during their French tennis Open semi-final match at the Roland Garros stadium in Paris on June 5, 2014. (PATRICK KOVARIK/AFP/Getty Images)

Earlier, Bouchard saw her idol Sharapova fight back in the second set to win a hard-fought, fault-filled battle 7-5.

Earlier: Eugenie Bouchard, who grew up idolizing Maria Sharapova, said she won’t be intimidated when she plays the 2012 champion today for a spot in the French Open tennis final.

The 18th-seeded Bouchard is playing in her second consecutive Grand Slam semifinal, having also reached the final four at January’s Australian Open. The only other Canadian woman to reach the semifinals at one of tennis’ four major tournaments was Carling Bassett-Seguso at the 1984 U.S. Open.

Bouchard, 20, said she decided to become a tennis player after watching Sharapova win the first of her four major titles at Wimbledon 10 years ago. Bouchard has a picture of herself with the Russian taken at a tournament in Miami when she was 7.

“As a child I looked up to her and I remember watching her in the final of Wimbledon and thought what she was doing was so cool,” Bouchard said in a news conference after her quarterfinal victory at Roland Garros in Paris. “I wanted to do the same thing.”

Good luck to Canadian Eugenie Bouchard, who will take on Maria Sharapova in the Semifinals at the French Open tennis tournament in an hour!

Andrea Petkovic of Germany takes on Simona Halep of Romania in today’s second French Open semifinal.

The 5-foot-10 (1.78-meter) Bouchard is on a career-best 10- match winning streak since losing in the first round of Madrid and Rome last month. She came to Roland Garros after winning her first WTA title, in Nuremberg, Germany, and faces a semifinal opponent who won two majors by the age of 20.

“I’m going to respect her, but not put her too high on a pedestal,” Bouchard told reporters. “I will leave everything on court and just focus on myself and try my best to win.”

Royal Penchant

The Bouchard family lives on the same street in Montreal as former Canadian Prime Minister Brian Mulroney and has a fondness for the British royal family. Her parents named their twins Eugenie and Beatrice after the children of Prince Andrew, the Duke of York, and his former wife, Sarah Ferguson, while their son is William, the same as the heir to the throne.

Bouchard, who started playing tennis when she was 5, won the junior Wimbledon title in 2012 and has climbed to No. 16 in the rankings from 302nd at the end of 2011.

Since winning Wimbledon at the age of 17, Sharapova has grown into one of the biggest draws on the women’s tour. The 27- year-old Sharapova is the world’s best-paid female athlete, according to Forbes, with $29 million a year in prize money and endorsements from companies including Nike Inc. and Volkswagen AG’s Porsche.

While reaching the semifinals in Paris may help Bouchard add to a list of five sponsors that includes Nike, racket manufacturer Babolat and poultry product retailer Pinty’s, she needs to lift a Grand Slam trophy to really boost commercial interest, said Courtney Nally, senior vice president, director of talent negotiations at Ketchum Sports & Entertainment.

“Often in a sport like tennis, it takes a player notching their first major win in the books before their true earning potential is realized globally,” Austin, Texas-based Nally said in an e-mail.

Breakthrough Year

Bouchard, who trailed 5-2 in the first set and recovered from a 4-1 deficit in the third to beat Spain’s Carla Suarez Navarro in the quarterfinals, said she’s not on the circuit to make friends.

“Best friend on tour? I don’t have one,” she said. “I don’t think the tennis tour is the place to have friends. For me, it’s all competition and I think it’s important to just remember that we’re going to play against each other. It’s not like we’re teammates.”

Although Bouchard has yet to win a set in two meetings with Sharapova — who is 17-1 on clay this season and has won 52 of her past 56 matches on the surface — the Canadian said she’s “ready for another battle.”

“The semis of a Grand Slam, that’s what you have to expect,” Bouchard said. “I’m just looking forward to the challenge.”